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Arcade FX Pratabout (Prototype)

TEOL

Posted 18 April 2017 - 03:15 PM

Had a pratabout for the sake of it using oldschool M1FX and the latest MAME Code to attempt a source code for the dream game audio player.

Might be impossible but who cares if someone can build the dream software out of my code setup then at least I achived something from making this proto in the first place.

Nobody else has tried anything at all to improve it so I just had to do it.

The idea of this demo code is to upgrade Arcade FX firstly to play every arcade game in it's click to listen in M1 mode which is important for those who use Arcade both for M1FX and for playing the games like I do. Secondary idea of this is in load game audio button mode it is able to read from now more carts and floppies than just only the Megadrive now.

All this = better quality than VGM and SPC ect. dumping because you are listening to the music straight from source and not dumping it to a lossy format and if you do dump it it's output is in Wave the completely uncompressed format with no issues like Mono sound unless the game is in Mono as some emulators even capture VGM and SPC in Mono as standard even if it's a stereo audio game.

No longer required would be that dire incomplete gameslist with many Megadrive and Arcade games missing from the list altogether although I did appreciate the hard work the guy put into it when it was a requirement adding games to the rubbsih list although not that many at once which is another downfall which has always been m1's weakness from the start if it's possible to get roms audio loading via the hash files now instead that is this would no longer be a huge boundery as the gamelists in the hash are almost complete for all the systems in it adn therefore it would work in Arcade FX's favor.

It might just be a dream passionate project and might not be possible even by one of you experts to build anything with this but still I wanna see it attempted so heres my code submission to at least attempt to make it a reality.

Included is the oldschool in source format as well. It's leagues ahead of the proof of consept version of the code for sure as it's an actual tree of complete code not what I thought was a new alias for sections like boards anymore as now I know thats been changed to 3 folder sections and has 3 codes going for each board sometimes the includes almost matches the old board version, sometimes video matched it, other times videos and drivers had the same bytes versions so the fact is 3 sometimes 4 of the folders are hooked together as code now and all 3 files are now needed to run a board as it's not single file anymore. lol.

I used to think includes now = boards in classic but now I'm not so sure now because videos, drivers, includes and machine has their own versions of the code.

Bus is a new section dedicated to getting cartridge slots loading. Without codes from there I don't think we can load music from some cart formats because you need to be able to load the cart to listen to the music so I think thats a major new section of code for getting any kind of new version working at all.

They should have kept the code in the same old regualr c format I feel but the cpp and h changes have been done now probably for the better but it might mean having to build a new Arcade FX code from scratch out of the codes to make everything run which is the pain in the arse part.

mamesick

Posted 23 April 2017 - 04:43 PM

mamesick

Member

Members+

61 posts

Hello. I'm a bit confused here, mainly because:

1) You included all the new MAME stuff in M1FX source but is it really needed? I guess no. ARCADE don't support MESS stuff and it will never do it, so why waste your time in trying to support card slots, etc. when they *are not* supported by ARCADE. The only platform we could care about card slots is NEOGEO but old M1FX already play it without problems.

2) Does this new source code really compiles and work? Which version of GCC should we use to have the new executable? Please take in mind that original M1 core is buggy with recent versions of MinGW-GCC. Here's a reference experienced by myself:http://mame32fx.alte...&start=50#p1931

Please provide more detailed info, as requested in the two points above. Thank you.

TEOL

Posted 25 April 2017 - 10:23 AM

TEOL

Newbie Poster

Members+

7 posts

I have no clue. Not a programmer. Just heard M1 was based off of MAME to begin with.

Edit: I've got an idea maybe M1's audio coding was actually made with pre compiled MAME codes from the beginning and not the raw source code at all which meant I set it up wrong if thats indeed how it's done but stuff like M1 and M1FX and all that rubbish was a different code in actual raw code format on top of the pre compiled audio codes.

What you mentioned about compiling softwares made me think of that although I'm not a coder whatsoever.

Also explains why in RAW form even MAME on it's own had about 3 or 4 files and folders per game because on the old one the stuff was pre compiled already and just the m1 folder was source.

As it's an audio player though I have no clue about if I should include the MESS audio hardware but keep in mind Arcade itself is for the arcade but m1fx has a load button on it so it would work as a frontend for arcade games but can also play much more too if MESS is left in.

The idea I had was the Arcade frontend is the filter to let it run on arcade games only once it's made if it can be done that is but the load button in software lets you toy around with it unfiltered so it would be double tier thats the plan plus arcade hardware needs some of those audio chips anyway.

Arcadia Arcade Games = Paula Chip

SNES Arcade (Both & Pirates) = SPC Chip

Genesis/Megadrive/Megaplay & Tech (MD & MS AY & YM Chips)

Neogeo Arcade (Shares AES YM Chip)

PC Engine Arcade Pirates (Shares Home Hardware YM Chip)

All of them may have been thrown out of the MAME side of the code now because they are inside the MESS side of the code and when compiled works in both sides of the hardware home and arcade.

I guess it would be easy to throw out the rest of the MESS side but it would be more simple to keep everything in but let the arcade software be it's filter for arcade games only.

Does anyone know if theres any truth to the MAME stuff itself in M1 not being RAW source but pre compiled. In that case this prat about would need a bit of tweeking to be M1FX Raw source with MAME pre compiled to make it be able to be compiled as a working proto although I admit I won't be able to do that bit as I have no knowledge of compiling.

Only tried compiling MAME once with Mr. Dos Tutorial and it did work but when it came to patching it to the latest version it stopped working half way through the compiling of the following months patch so gave up compiling altogether after that and thats my only knowedge of compiling myself.

Maybe it was because that months was a buggy patch or something but it did make me give up compiling making me think it was a waste of my time and effort.

They did get rid of the u patch system now and actually do monthly proper pre compiled updates now. The u system had been stopped for the github system but even that trunk is pre compiled on Crimson Rain now if I wanted to use it for lets say this if I did require pre compild audio boards rather than raw 3 folder.

Edit: Nah I installed the current MAME and it had no audio folders or anything of the sort unless they are hidden.

mamesick

Posted 05 May 2017 - 04:40 PM

mamesick

Member

Members+

61 posts

Sorry for the very late reply, I've been very busy. In few words I want to explain you that IS NOT POSSIBLE update M1 source code to the current MAME one. M1 is made of various ancient sound cores that are at least 15 or more years old. So sorry but there will never be an updated M1FX also because I'm no more interested in it, I quit the emulation "scene" and its dramas and my main hobby is now take care of my life. I play games rarely though I like to continue to follow my old "baby" in its new incarnation and life, ARCADE32/64.